Systems and methods for visualizing a cannula trajectory

Abstract

A system and method for visualizing a cannula trajectory. An embodiment of the present invention generally includes an ultrasound probe attached to a first camera and/or a second camera and a processing and display generating system that may be in signal communication with the ultrasound probe, the first camera, and/or the second camera. A user of the system scans tissue containing a target vein using the ultrasound probe and a cross-sectional image of the target vein may be displayed. The first camera records a first image of a cannula in a first direction and the second camera records a second image of the cannula in a second direction orthogonal to the first direction. The first and/or the second images may be processed by the processing and display generating system along with the relative positions of the ultrasound probe, the first camera, and/or the second camera to determine the trajectory of the cannula. A representation of the determined trajectory of the cannula may be then displayed on the ultrasound image.

1 . A system for visualizing a medical object trajectory comprising:
 a processing and display generating system;   an ultrasound probe for scanning tissue in signal communication with the processing and display generating system; and   at least one camera for capturing at least one image of a medical object in signal communication with the processing and display generating system,   wherein the processing and display generating system is configured to process signals received from the ultrasound probe, display an ultrasound image of the tissue, process signals received from the at least one camera to determine a trajectory of the medical object, and display a representation of the determined trajectory of the medical object on the ultrasound image.   
   
   
       2 . The system of  claim 1 , wherein the at least one camera includes a first camera that takes images of the medical object in a first direction and a second camera that takes images of the medical object in a second direction. 
   
   
       3 . The system of  claim 2 , wherein the first and second cameras are in a fixed position relative to the ultrasound probe. 
   
   
       4 . The system of  claim 3 , wherein the second direction is orthogonal to the first direction. 
   
   
       5 . The system of  claim 2 , wherein the medical object includes a cannula. 
   
   
       6 . The system of  claim 2 , wherein the medical object includes a plurality of reflectors and wherein the processing and display generating system is configured to determine a trajectory of the medical object based on light reflected by the plurality of reflectors. 
   
   
       7 . The system of  claim 6 , wherein the medical object includes a needle having a bevel, at least one of the reflectors is located near the bevel, and the processing and display generating system is configured to determine a trajectory of the bevel. 
   
   
       8 . The system of  claim 2 , wherein the processing and display generating system is configured to display a cross-sectional image of a target vein located within the scanned tissue on the ultrasound image and wherein the processing and display generating system is configured to display a representation of the determined trajectory of the medical object on the ultrasound image. 
   
   
       9 . The system of  claim 8 , wherein the representation of the determined trajectory includes cross-hairs. 
   
   
       10 . The system of  claim 2 , further comprising an illumination source for illuminating the medical object during image capture. 
   
   
       11 . The system of  claim 10 , wherein the illumination source includes infrared light emitting diodes. 
   
   
       12 . The system of  claim 2 , wherein at least one of the first and second cameras are configured to capture images of a portion of the medical object when the portion is in a sub-dermal location. 
   
   
       13 . A method for visualizing a medical object trajectory comprising:
 scanning tissue using an ultrasound probe;   displaying an ultrasound image of the tissue;   capturing at least one image of a medical object using at least one camera;   processing the at least one image to determine a trajectory of the medical object; and   displaying a representation of the determined trajectory of the medical object on the ultrasound image.   
   
   
       14 . The method of  claim 13 , wherein capturing at least one image includes capturing a first image of the medical object from a first camera in a first direction and capturing a second image of the medical object from a second camera in a second direction. 
   
   
       15 . The method of  claim 14 , wherein the second direction is orthogonal to the first direction. 
   
   
       16 . The method of  claim 14 , wherein the medical object includes a cannula. 
   
   
       17 . The method of  claim 14 , wherein displaying an ultrasound image of the tissue includes displaying a cross-sectional image of the tissue scanned by a scanning plane of the ultrasound probe. 
   
   
       18 . The method of  claim 17 , wherein processing the at least one image to determine a trajectory of the medical object includes determining a location where the medical object is projected to intersect the scanning plane, and wherein displaying a representation of the determined trajectory includes displaying cross-hairs on the cross-sectional ultrasound image at the projected intersection location. 
   
   
       19 . A system for visualizing a medical object trajectory comprising:
 ultrasound scanning means for scanning tissue;   image capture means for capturing at least one image of a medical object;   processing means for processing signals received from the ultrasound scanning means and for processing signals received from the image capture means to determine a trajectory of the medical object, the processing means in signal communication with the ultrasound scanning means and the image capture means; and   display generating means for displaying an image of the scanned tissue and a representation of the determined trajectory of the medical object on the image.   
   
   
       20 . The system of  19 , wherein the image capture means includes first image capture means for capturing images of the medical object in a first direction and second image capture means for capturing images of the medical object in a second direction.